


First Christmas

by The_Marauder_Named_Prongs



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Christmas, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-18
Updated: 2013-01-18
Packaged: 2017-11-25 22:17:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,617
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/643533
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Marauder_Named_Prongs/pseuds/The_Marauder_Named_Prongs
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>How Remus got his carrying case.</p>
            </blockquote>





	First Christmas

Christmas was fast approaching. Sirius had already finished all of his Christmas shopping, except for one thing. He still needed to get something for Remus. It was their first Christmas together, both as a couple and living on their own, and Sirius wanted it to be really special.

He and Remus had decorated their flat with tacky Muggle garland and fairy lights (which were not Muggle at all. They were real fairies). Sirius had even insisted on getting a tree. Remus had resisted for a time, but he eventually gave in and good-heartedly went with Sirius to pick one out. They had Apparated to a forest near Remus’ parents’ house to search for a tree. They had found only one that would fit into their small flat without taking out the ceiling or spreading across the entire living area. It was scrawny and half bare, and even after they hung decorations on it, it was a rather pathetic tree. But it was theirs and they looked on it fondly.

Christmas was now only three day away. When Sirius walked into the living room, he noticed a small pile of wrapped parcels under the tree. They were unlabeled, but Sirius knew whom they were from and whom they were for. A set of stockings had been pinned to the wall next to the tree, since they had no fireplace. Sirius smiled when he saw them. Remus seemed to have finally gotten into the Christmas spirit.

It was then that Sirius realized how direly he needed to go shopping. Nothing. He had nothing for Remus. Nothing to add to that small pile under their pathetic little tree. He dressed quietly and left the flat before Remus even got out of bed. He Apparated to Hogsmeade first, but nothing there seemed satisfactory. Sure, he could buy Remus some quills or some chocolate (which he did actually do. Something needed to be put in those stockings, after all) but that didn’t feel very special.

He stopped in Diagon Alley next, thinking about Flourish and Blotts and all the wonderful books there Remus couldn’t afford. When he entered the shop, however, he had no idea where to even begin. He had never been in here except when buying schoolbooks. He didn’t even know if they sold anything else. He walked out of the store as soon as he’d walked in. Diagon Alley, he decided, wasn’t the place where he would find Remus’ present either. So he headed for the streets of London.

Oddly enough, he had much greater success in Muggle London than he had in the Wizarding world. He found several nice trinkets, like record albums of some of Remus’ favorite musicians and some Muggle literature he knew Remus liked. He also purchased a warm winter coat. He knew Remus needed a new one, though he couldn’t afford one and would never admit that the one he currently owned was hardly warm anymore with all its holes and frays. He charmed the coat with a fitting spell, so that it would adjust perfectly to Remus’ body as though it were custom tailored for him.

Still, he wasn’t satisfied with the gifts. They were useful and Remus would certainly enjoy them, but there wasn’t anything extraordinary about them. Not even the charmed coat. So he continued his search late into the afternoon.

When he found what he was looking for, he hadn’t even realized it was what he had wanted. It was perfect, and with the right spellwork, it would be spectacular. He had entered a shop that seemed to sell a little of everything with no intention of actually buying anything. As he perused the oddities of the store, he saw something that was just too perfect. It was a small leather case in excellent condition. He picked it up with a smile, enjoying the feel of it in his hands. He bought it immediately and headed home.

When he arrived at the flat, he opened the door cautiously. “Remus?” he called, with only his head stuck through the doorway.

Remus rounded the corner from the kitchen, looking at Sirius quizzically. “Yes?”

Sirius smiled at him broadly. “Can you go lock yourself in the bathroom for a while?”

Remus laughed. “Why would I want to do that?”

“Because I have to wrap your Christmas presents and you’re going to ruin the surprise!”

“Alright, alright,” Remus gave in. “Let me just grab something really quick.”

Sirius waited patiently as Remus’ figure retreated into the living room. He came back into view seconds later with a book in his hands. “Just let me know when it’s safe to come out,” he said as he opened the bathroom door and shut himself in.

Sirius moved into the flat quickly, carrying the large bag of presents behind him as he closed and locked himself into their bedroom. He dumped the contents of the bag on the bed and began wrapping them magically. He conjured wrapping paper and tape and set them to work with a flick of his wand. The finished products, he had to admit, weren’t very pretty, but he couldn’t have done much better by hand. They would have to do.

Finally, he came to the small carrying case. He set it on the bed and placed his wand on it. It took a decent bit of time and some fancy wand waving, but he was thoroughly satisfied with the result. The corner of the case now read “Professor R. J. Lupin” in a bright gold script. Sirius worried that the lettering hadn’t adhered to the case as well as he would have liked, but it would have to do. He even took the time to wrap the case by hand. It really didn’t look any better than the ones he’d wrapped with magic.

He took his small pile of presents and walked back through the flat. He arranged them under the tree next to the pile Remus had created. He smiled at the display with satisfaction and beckoned to Remus from the bathroom. Remus entered the living room, glanced at the tree and smiled.

“Thank you, Sirius,” he said, kissing Sirius lightly on the cheek.

“You don’t even know what they are yet,” Sirius replied, returning a kiss to Remus’ lips.

“No,” Remus admitted, pulling away from Sirius’ insistent lips, “but I know I’ll love them.”

* * *

When Christmas morning arrived, Remus refused to open any presents until after they had gone to see Lily and James and his parents. Sirius couldn’t believe it, but neither could he change Remus’ mind. So together, they left their flat without a single present unwrapped and did not return until the evening.

Sirius was practically bouncing out of his shoes when they arrived home. He dropped the bag full of presents from Remus’ parents and their friends onto the floor just within the doorway. He pulled on Remus’ hand, dragging him into the living room like an overly excited child. He let go of Remus, dropped to his knees on the floor and pushed Remus’ pile of presents to his feet. “Open this one last,” he said, pointing to the present he had wrapped by hand.

“Okay.” Remus sat on the couch and slowly took off his shoes and tattered coat. “The others are yours,” he said, with a nervous smile. “Open the smallest last.”

Sirius nodded, looking at the small rectangular box with wonder. It was no more than three inches long and two inches wide. He had no idea what could be in there. He glanced back up at Remus happily. “You first,” he said.

Remus tore the paper from the presents carefully. He first unwrapped the chocolate and quills, laughing and thanking Sirius kindly. He next opened the books, flipping through them happily until Sirius made an irritated huffing noise that sounded very much like Padfoot. Remus laughed again, setting the novels aside and picking up the thin parcel containing the Muggle records. He smiled at those as well, setting them aside much quicker to appease his impatient boyfriend. The only package remaining, not including the one he must open last, was quite large. He peeled the paper away from the box in slow strips. The box had been taped closed with an extraordinary amount of tape. Remus raised an eyebrow at Sirius.

Sirius shrugged with a weak smile. “The tape got a bit carried away with itself.”

Remus shook his head, laughing quietly. He plucked the tape from the box one piece at a time, as Sirius nearly exploded from his own lack of patience. Finally, Remus pulled away the top of the box. Inside lay a large grey coat of a soft material. He lifted it out with shining eyes. It was gorgeous and looked very warm.

“Thank you,” he said, standing and holding the coat to his chest. “It’s perfect.”

“Try it on,” Sirius insisted.

Remus passed his arms into the coat and shifted it onto his shoulders. As he buttoned it, he felt the coat contract at his shoulders and lengthen down his arms very slightly. He looked down at it in wonder.

“It’s self-fitting,” Sirius explained. Remus nodded silently. It was even warmer than it looked. “I knew you needed another one and I thought this one would look wonderful on you, which it does,” Sirius babbled. “I hope you li –”

Remus quieted him with an insistent kiss. “I love it,” he said when he pulled away. “It’s perfect.” Sirius smiled genuinely, nodding. Remus pulled the coat from his shoulders and placed it over the arm of the couch as he resumed his seat. “Now you go,” he said, nodding towards the pile of untouched presents next to Sirius’ seat on the floor.

“You’ve still got one left,” Sirius said, indicating the final present from Remus’ pile.

“You told me to open it last. So I’ll open it last.”

Sirius nodded, digging into his pile of presents. He set the small box aside and tried not to think about it. He was very eager to know what it contained. Remus had wrapped his presents much nicer than Sirius had been able to. He almost felt bad for opening them and destroying the expert wrappings. Remus had gotten Sirius many odds and ends from Zonko’s, all of which made Sirius bark with laughter and glee. He had bought him a small Muggle radio, since Sirius’ had recently broke when he tried to charm it to play Wizarding stations and the spell had backfired. Sirius was very satisfied with that present and sat playing with it for nearly as long as Remus had sat peering through his books. Another box contained brushes and toys for Padfoot, which left Sirius laughing loudly and thanking Remus profusely. It was a silly present, but Sirius really did love it. Then, all that remained to him was the small box he was so curious about.

He looked to Remus expectantly, pointing at the box Remus had yet to open. “You first,” he said in mimic of his earlier statement.

Remus agreed silently and picked the box up from the floor. He set it in his lap and unwrapped it as slowly as he had unwrapped everything else. It was a small leather briefcase, Remus realized when enough paper had been torn away. It looked rather plain and Remus wondered briefly why Sirius had requested that he open it last.

Seeing the confusion on his face, Sirius said softly, “Turn it over.”

Remus did. And then he understood. The curling gold letters made him want to laugh and cry all at once.  _Professor R. J. Lupin_.

“For when you become a teacher,” Sirius explained.

Remus nodded silently, looking at Sirius with an intensity in his eyes Sirius hadn’t seen before. “It’s wonderful,” Remus said softly. He felt uncharacteristically choked up. He loved the gift – he loved the thought Sirius had poured into it, but he also resented the fact that he would never have the opportunity to use the case properly. He would never be a teacher, no matter what Sirius thought or how Sirius rationalized it to him. A known werewolf would never secure a job with children, at Hogwarts or otherwise. But he appreciated the thought and the encouragement Sirius supplied with the gift. “I’ll keep it until it falls apart.”

Sirius face broke into a wide grin. “Good,” he said happily.

They sat in silence for several minutes. Remus stared at his briefcase and Sirius stared at him. When Remus looked up and realized Sirius was waiting for him, he shook his head slightly to clear his mind and waved a hand at Sirius’ last present.

“Open it,” he said, feeling a sudden giddiness to see Sirius’ face when the cover came off the small package.

Sirius had been waiting so long that he no longer bothered to treat the impeccable wrapping paper gently. He tore it from the small parcel in one go. The small black box within had a cover – thankfully untaped – that Sirius pulled off just as roughly. A silver key on a black fob lay inside.

“What’s this?” he asked in confusion, lifting the key from the box and studying it hard.

“It’s a key,” Remus replied lamely.

Sirius looked at him pointedly, causing Remus to laugh loudly. “A key to what?” he clarified.

“To this,” Remus said, pulling his wand from his sleeve and waving it at the kitchen. A small square of folded paper zoomed into his lap. He handed it to Sirius.

Sirius opened it much more gently than he had opened the final present. It was a title, as far as Sirius could understand, and it was in his name. He scanned the paper quickly, looking for some indication of what it was a title to.

“A  _motorbike_?” he shouted incredulously, jumping to his feet. “You got me a  _motorbike?!_ ” He couldn’t believe it. Quite literally. “What – How –  _Where is it_?”

Remus laughed again. “It’s at my parents’,” he explained. “Lily helped me sort out the paperwork. It’s all yours.”

Sirius could hear the blood rushing through the veins in his ears. He was so happy he felt that he would die. He pulled Remus up from the couch roughly, wrapping him in a tight embrace. “Thank you so much,” he said into Remus’ hair, holding him there for several seconds.

When they pulled apart, Sirius was warring with two very different emotions. He wanted nothing more than to drag Remus back to his parent’s house so he could see the bike, but he also couldn’t stop the guilt and concern he felt because Remus had bought him such an expensive present.

“You didn’t have to do this, you know,” Sirius said quietly.

Remus shrugged easily. “I wanted to.”

“How…” Sirius paused, not knowing how to ask without offending. “How did you afford this?”

Remus shrugged again, smiling mischievously. “I have my ways,” was all he said in response.

Sirius smiled, unsatisfied with the answer, but happy to let it go for now. “Can I go see her?” he asked excitedly.

“What, now?”

“ _Yes_ , now!”

“I don’t know,” Remus began, tapping his chin and checking his watch exaggeratedly. “It’s rather late and my parents might be sleeping.”

Sirius rolled his eyes. “We don’t have to see them or wake them up or anything. We just have to get the bike and go.”

Remus laughed louder and more genuinely than he had all night. “Oh, alright, you great mutt,” he conceded. “Let me just get my coat.”

Sirius bounded to the door happily, turning back to see Remus putting on his new coat. They both smiled broadly as they exited the flat and Apparated away.

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the Winter Wolfstar Wank on Tumblr.


End file.
